Brenda Vitória Pacífico Pinto was born in a favela and is an environmental educator and researcher. She graduated in biological sciences with a bachelor's degree in ecology from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) and is a PhD student in urban and regional planning at IPPUR/UFRJ. She works in civil society organizations with a race, gender, and territory approach. Through urban ecology, she studies how urbanization processes influence the ecosystems of Rio de Janeiro's favelas, especially in the Maré favela complex.